


The Great Indoors

by aliciameade



Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: F/F, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Locked In, Mutual Pining, Pitch Perfect 2, Pitch Perfect Fandom Drive, Post-Pitch Perfect
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:07:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24636556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aliciameade/pseuds/aliciameade
Summary: Beca and Chloe accidentally get locked inside an R.E.I. (An outdoor activities supply store, for those unfamiliar.)Hijinks ensue.
Relationships: Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell
Comments: 27
Kudos: 216
Collections: Pitch Perfect Fandom Drive





	The Great Indoors

**Author's Note:**

  * For [aca_bhlo_me](https://archiveofourown.org/users/aca_bhlo_me/gifts).



> Check out [@PPFandomDrive](https://ppfandomdrive.tumblr.com/post/619946185015377920/thanks-to-sketchywave-for-the-poster-if-youre) on tumblr.

* * *

Beca didn’t consider herself particularly outdoorsy (she could get sunburned at night and she was allergic to every type of stinging insect, among other inconveniences), but she enjoyed fewer shopping excursions than those to R.E.I. to be Chloe’s helper whenever she had an upcoming trip. Beca was in charge of the shopping cart and telling Chloe whether or not the gear she was trying on looked cute while still being functional.

And Beca liked the gear and supplies. It was cool how there were so many specialized shoes and backpacks and jackets for all manner of activities. She wouldn’t mind being less prone to emergencies to be able to try something new once in a while.

Plus, she kind of liked Chloe’s dedication to always trying to convince Beca to join her on her next adventure.

She also liked Chloe pouting until Beca admitted whatever she was trying on was indeed cute. Beca always thinks Chloe’s cute but it’s not like she can tell her that all the time. That would be weird. Friends don’t do that.

“Who are you going with?” she asks as Chloe stands in front of a display of kayaking gear.

“The same crew I went out to Zion with. They’re always encouraging everyone to bring a friend. You should totes come with me.”

Beca surveys the kayaks leaning against the wall and visions of flipping over, getting stuck, and drowning flash through her mind. “Pass,” she says quickly. “Maybe something more...terrestrial.”

“Okay,” Chloe says with a shrug. She never argues with Beca over it, but she does always re-extend the invitation. “What do you think: black or pink?” she continues as she plucks two helmets off the display to turn and hold them up for Beca’s opinion.

“Let’s see ‘em in action,” she answers, gesturing for Chloe to try them on.

* * *

“What kind of adventure would you be down for?” Chloe asks, somewhat unexpectedly, as they meander through displays and racks of camping gear. They’ve already picked out everything on her list but still find themselves browsing. “When you said ‘more terrestrial,’” she adds. “Camping?”

Beca’s about to answer when the PA system interrupts, informing shoppers the store will be closing in 15 minutes. She waits until they’re finished.

“Yeah, camping, I guess,” she says with a vague wave of her hand toward the staged campground the store has set up to display their wide variety of tents, coolers, chairs, and portable grills. “Just maybe not in the middle of nowhere like you do.”

She knows her answer excites Chloe by the way her eyes light up and her back straightens. “I don’t even own a tent because I’m always sharing with someone else on the trip.” She’s already on her hands and knees crawling through the entrance of a small tent before Beca can argue.

Not that she has a point to argue.

Chloe’s kneeling inside and looking out at Beca expectantly. “Come on! Let’s try this one.”

Beca just gives a shake of her head and kneels down to crawl into the tent, too. She hears Chloe zip the flap behind her and then she’s being dragged down until they’re lying side by side.

“We fit!” Chloe declares as she makes it a point to spread out and take up space until she’s crowding Beca.

“Obviously we fit,” she says, trying not to laugh as Chloe’s elbow digs into her ribs until she’s forced to roll onto her side to escape it. “It’s a two-person tent. We are two people.” She should have known better to turn, though, because the second she does, Chloe’s on her like a magnet, making Beca her little spoon as she does so often.

Not that she minds Chloe’s propensity to be close to Beca.

She kind of loves it, in fact.

“See, and we can cuddle for body heat if it gets chilly overnight.”

“Right,” Beca says, letting herself smile when she feels the way Chloe’s almost nuzzling her. It drives her crazy, too. Chloe is so physically affectionate with Beca, more so than anyone Beca’s ever dated, and she and Chloe are definitively _not_ dating. It feels like they are, though, from the way they check in with one another throughout the day if they’re apart and how they download their days when they’re together to their Co-Captain Conferences which is just a serious-sounding name that allows them to lock themselves in Chloe’s room under the guise of working on the Bellas’ next set when they’re actually watching movies or talking or napping and not getting interrupted.

The way Beca’s heart aches when Chloe does go on her weeklong excursions...that, too, makes it feel a lot like they’re dating.

But...they’re not.

* * *

It’s the last thought that floats through her mind before her eyes are fluttering open to near darkness.

She’s disoriented and her shoulder and hip ache from whatever hard surface she’s lying on. The only thing she does recognize is the scent, sound, and feel of Chloe asleep behind her and she jostles her until she’s startling awake, too.

“Hmm, what?” Chloe says, voice gravelly with sleep.

“We fell asleep in the tent,” Beca says once her brain stitches the events together. Once she sits up and glances out of the tent’s mesh window and is met with the dimly lit retail floor, her heart stops. “Chloe?”

“Hmm?” she says through a yawn as she sits up, too.

“What time is it?”

She watches Chloe pull her phone out of her back pocket—Beca’s own phone is in her purse which...she realizes with additional terror...was left in the cart before they decided to try the tent—and check it. “10:34.”

Beca inhales at that and holds her breath, waiting for Chloe to connect the dots, too.

“Oh, my gosh, it’s 10:34!”

“And it’s dark in here.” Beca leans forward to unzip the tent’s flap and crawl out, relieved to find her purse in the cart, everything right where they left it by some miracle. “Chlo, the store’s closed.”

She watches Chloe crawl out, too, and stand to survey everything, just like Beca’s doing. “There must be a security guard or something,” Chloe says confidently as she starts walking toward the entrance.

There is no security guard, they find. They also decide to not try the doors because setting off an alarm might be really bad. A phone call to the company’s customer support number instructs them to call back during the hours of 7:00 AM and 6:00 PM.

“Okay, we don’t need to panic,” Beca says when she watches Chloe start to do her panic-pacing. “We’re fine. We’re safe.”

“We’re trapped in here!” Chloe screeches.

It makes Beca flinch and she grabs Chloe by the forearms when she paces past again. “Chloe, chill out!”

Chloe gulps and Beca can see the fear in her eyes.

“Chill, okay?” she says, lowering her voice. “They’ll open in the morning and we can leave. They have bathrooms and water, and I know you have at least one granola bar in your purse, right?”

Chloe nods and her eyes start to look a bit less wild.

“Good.” Beca smiles, and then lets herself smile bigger. “We’re locked in a store.”

Chloe whines. “I know, Beca!” 

“No, Chloe. We’re locked in a _store!_ ” she turns them so Chloe’s facing toward the sporting goods supplier’s floor, devoid of other shoppers and employees. “Didn’t you ever dream about this as a kid?”

She can tell Chloe’s considering it, thinking about it, until a smile starts to tug at her lips. “Okay, yeah.”

“Then, come on!” Beca grabs her hand to run—not out of necessity but out of excitement—back into the depths of the store. “I want to play with everything. What first?”

“Bikes! Let’s get bikes,” Chloe says pointing off to their left. “This place is huge; we can get around faster!”

“Yes, yes—I love the way you think.”

Armed with speedy transportation, they make it a point to visit every department, trying on hiking boots and life jackets and snowboards. Chloe decides to document the adventure on her Instagram so every department needs to have its own photoshoot.

Eventually, they end up back in the paddling department and Beca’s helping Chloe maneuver a massive tandem kayak down from where it’s leaning against the wall.

“Get in,” Chloe says, gesturing at the front seat while she lowers herself into the back after grabbing a couple of paddles. “I’ll show you how easy it is.”

“I don’t know how to tell you this,” Beca says as she takes the offered paddle and sits down, “but we’re not in the water right now.”

“Shush, I know. But I can show you the stroke.”

Beca can’t help the amused snort that escapes her.

“You just made that dirty.”

“Did not.”

“Yes, you did.” Chloe sounds amused. “Okay, put your hands where the grippy parts are on the paddle.”

Beca does as she’s told and then jumps a little when Chloe’s voice is suddenly close.

“Good.” Chloe’s arms suddenly frame Beca’s, her hands just outside of each of her own. “It’s just this motion.” Then they’re moving, Chloe’s push and pull directing Beca. “See how easy?”

Something about the moment makes Beca’s voice catch for a second and she has to swallow. “Yeah. Something tells me it’s not as easy in a river.”

“It’s really not difficult. Would I lie to you?”

“No, I guess not.”

Chloe hums, happy with Beca’s answer, and then her presence retreats. “Keep going; I need to take a picture. Actually, I’m going to do a video!”

“Of course you are,” Beca laughs but carries on for Chloe’s entertainment.

It’s around 2:00 AM when they’re both yawning, having eaten Chloe’s emergency stash of granola bars and a bag of gummy bears Beca swiped from the checkout area, promising Chloe she’d pay for them tomorrow with the rest of their items. They return the bicycles to their display and wander back to the camping section.

“You know, if there was ever a store to get locked in, this was a pretty good option,” Chloe says as she sits down on the edge of a fully inflated air mattress. It’s the floor’s display model, but it’s a bed nonetheless.

“So true.” Beca follows, settling on the slightly wobbly mattress next to Chloe.

Usually, like in the tent, she would flip onto her side, her back to Chloe to settle in for sleep.

For some reason, this time she turned the other way to face Chloe. Maybe because they weren’t finished talking—they didn’t yet have a plan for the morning, aka what to tell the first person who discovers them—or maybe Beca just wanted to look at Chloe for a few more seconds before going to sleep. 

“I can’t believe this happened,” Chloe says with a giggle once they’re both settled.

“I know, right? So cool.”

Chloe’s quiet for what feels like a second too long before she says, “Thank you for calming me down. You know how I can get worked up about stuff.”

Beca smiles gently. “Yeah, of course, dude. You know I got your back.”

“I know you do.”

Chloe’s eyes are on Beca’s and the silence between them is suddenly heavy. Something about it makes Beca’s heart start to race. Chloe’s just looking at her not saying anything and Beca’s about to ask why she’s staring when Chloe interrupts her.

“Can I kiss you?”

Beca’s not sure she heard correctly. It’s hard to hear over the sound of the blood rushing in her ears. She debates asking Chloe to repeat herself, but she doesn’t want her to backpedal if she thinks Beca’s response means she wasn’t okay with it. Because she is so, soooo okay with it.

And if Beca did mishear, then she’ll deal with whatever she’s about to agree to.

“Yes.”

She didn’t mishear.

She can’t help the gasp that comes when Chloe’s lips are suddenly on hers. They’re soft and gentle but confident in their purpose and Beca is sure to kiss her back once her mind catches up with it.

Chloe pulls back after a few seconds and even in the dim lighting, she can tell Chloe’s blushing. She knows she is, too. “Was that okay?” Chloe asks, eyes wide and teeth tugging nervously at the lip that was just pressed against Beca’s.

Beca lets herself start to smile; the shock is subsiding and happiness is starting to rush into its place. “Why did you stop?” she asks, bringing her hand up between them to tug on Chloe’s shirt.

It’s not hard enough to actually pull Chloe in but it gets her point across and she’s still smiling when Chloe’s gleeful laugh gets muffled between their second kiss, one that is less about determining if it’s okay and a lot more about how their tongues move together.

* * *

They’re roused by blinding fluorescent lights a few hours later and share the story of their accidental lock-in with the very confused and highly suspicious morning shift. Chloe begs the manager-on-duty to not reprimand whoever was responsible for ensuring all guests were out of the store before locking up, blaming themselves for not paying attention to the time.

Eventually, they’re allowed to leave and pay for what they’d been shopping for yesterday, plus the two-person tent (which Chloe had run back to grab off the shelf and returned with a wink).

“Okay, what’s with the tent?” Beca asks once they’ve loaded up the back of Chloe’s car in the completely empty parking lot and sat down.

“We are totes going camping and making out under the stars.”

“Oh, are we?” Beca asks with amusement as she buckles her seatbelt.

“Yep,” Chloe says, taking advantage of Beca’s proximity to direct her right up and into a kiss. “If that’s okay with you?” she asks, eyes a little softer so Beca knows she’s being earnest.

“Yeah, okay,” she nods. “But I’m not sure it’s fair for you to ask me after you kiss me.”

“So I should withhold kisses until you answer?” Chloe says with a grin as she starts the car and drives toward the exit and street that will lead them back to the house.

“That doesn’t seem fair either,” Beca says with a thoughtful pout.

“Kinda sounds like I get my way if kisses are involved.”

Beca starts to object but instead, just smiles and looks out the passenger side window. “Yeah, it kinda does sound that way.”

_**The End** _


End file.
